The House Wren

Our Wrens Feeding Their Babies (video by SCB)

I have always been partial to house wrens.  Years ago, I purchased a wren house and set it up in my backyard near the top of one of my old laundry poles.  Unfortunately, I didn't realize that the house wasn't nearly high enough, and the nest was destroyed by raccoons.  After this, I determined I would be better off not having wrens nesting in my yard, but this spring, a pair of wrens decided otherwise.

My sister had purchased a purely ornamental birdhouse for me, and on a whim, I hung it outside. When I first noticed a male wren sitting on top of it, I assumed he was just using it as a decoy, but I was mistaken! He and his mate built a nest inside of it, and they are currently in the process of raising their fledglings (which I have heard but so far have not gotten a really good look at).  In order to prevent another unfortunate accident, we have been checking on them throughout the day and night, and letting our dogs out frequently. Hopefully our luck will hold!

Habitat
If you would like to attract wrens to your yard, the best way to lure them in and keep them around is to provide nesting houses.  These are available in many different stores, and usually have a detachable underside so that the house can be cleaned out when the nesting season is over.

One of our Wrens (photo by SCB)

Wren houses need to be hung up high, out of the reach of predators (unless you have a lot of time to babysit).  By putting out several houses, you will increase your chances of attracting a nesting pair, as the male wren will build at least 2 and sometimes 3 different nests in his efforts to find a mate.  Once one of the nests has been chosen by the female, the male will bring sticks and bar the entry to the other nests he has built in order to deter other wrens from nesting in them.

Food
I have read that wrens can be offered meal worms to feed their babies, but have not actually done this as I am extremely hesitant of luring in any other birds (especially blue jays!).  Just yesterday a jay was in my yard searching for the nest, but fortunately did not figure out where it was.  If you would like to feed wrens, just be sure not to let any other birds become aware that there is food around.

One of our Wrens Getting Ready to Feed the Babies (photo by SCB)

Our wrens have benefited from the slightly weedy areas in the yard, which are a prime insect hunting spot. They have found numerous caterpillars here.  They have also eaten all of the ants that used to congregate around the back porch, as well as the flies!

If you would like to have wrens nest in your backyard, please do not use pesticides!  These could poison the babies, and the wrens will do a better job of clearing out insects than any spray would, anyway.

I have not read anything about whether or not wrens will return to a yard once they have raised their babies in it, but I certainly hope they do!

The House Sparrow

It's a familiar mantra to anyone who feeds birds as a hobby:  "Sparrows don't like it."  For years, I was puzzled as to why, until I began to attract more and more sparrows to my feeders, to the extent that other birds were scared away.

Sparrows are aggressive.  I have seen them attack grosbeaks at my safflower seed feeder even though they do not care for safflower seed, presumably because they think there might be something there they want to eat.  I have seen them attack orioles at my oriole feeder in order to get most of the jelly.  The one bird they always seem to get along with is the Northern Cardinal, which for some unbeknownst region has a tendency to come eat when the sparrows are around (maybe because the sparrows serve as lookouts).  Other than that, practically any other bird is a suitable target for their bullying.

Sparrow by thistle feeder (photo by SCB)

With that being said, I have a confession to make:  I feed sparrows.  I don't feed them all of the time, and sometimes I feed them resentfully, but I do feed them.  Some of it is due to choice (I feel bad for them) and sometimes it is not (sparrows will find a way to access almost any feeder, whether it is sparrow proof or not).  Years ago, I was told the way to make sure only woodpeckers could access my suet feeder was to hang it upside down, and it was true...except for sparrows.  They have learned to hang upside on the feeders just like the woodpeckers and pull suet loose.  They have also learned to attack the woodpeckers at the precise moment they manage to pull suet free, causing them to drop whatever they have managed to extract.

Sparrows will also bully other birds out of their next boxes and take over them for their own fledglings. Since sparrows have several broods a year, this is a fairly common practice, making nesting more challenging for native birds such as bluebirds.

Sparrows, however, do have some advantages.

If you like hawks, you will definitely see them whenever you have a lot of sparrows around.  Hawks seem to have a special fondness for them, and will often pursue them, especially in the winter months, when their other prey is harder to find.

Sparrows are also good at keeping insect populations in check, probably because there are so many of them around!

Finally, I have to admit they are pretty (even if they do have very bad manners!)  While they may not be my favorite bird to watch, I have to admit I do enjoy them at times.

The Northern Cardinal

One of the cheeriest sights during the long, cold winters here in Omaha is the Northern Cardinals that come to visit our feeders.  Cardinals were one of the first birds that came to eat in our yard, and through the years, they have been some of our most constant visitors.  Fortunately, cardinals are easy to attract, and easy to keep around.  Below are some of the tips I have learned through the years to attract cardinals.

Food
Cardinals like both sunflower seed and safflower seed.  If you are interested in attracting many different birds, putting out black oil sunflower and striped sunflower seed will grant you your wish, as well as attracting cardinals.  If you would like to be a little more selective, cardinals are one of the few birds that really enjoy eating safflower seed.  The advantage of this is that grackles and sparrows will avoid your feeder, thereby ensuring less spillage and less waste.  Cardinals also eat many different types of insects, so leaving a section of your yard slightly long, so insects can hide in it, is a great way to lure them in.

Plants
Another appealing thing about cardinals is that they make a lot of nests, and are not especially worried about humans being nearby.  One of their favorites in my yard, which they have nested in on a regular basis, is my lilac trees.  They have also nested in my evergreens and even, earlier this year, my willow.  Having a variety of small trees in your yard can lure more cardinals in.  This year we actually had two different pairs of cardinals nest in our yard!

Male Northern Cardinal (photo by SCB)

Winter Feeding
Another thing I have noticed about cardinals that I have always found interesting is that their appetites seem to change during the winter months.  I say this because if I put out corn for them in the spring through fall months, they mostly ignore it, but if I do so during the winter, I can attract numerous cardinals, both male and female, and during this time of the year, they will eat together without fighting.  It was a visual delight last year to look outside and see them gathered in the snow, and on the bushes near where the corn was, like little Christmas tree ornaments.

Another thing I like about cardinals is that they are fairly friendly birds.  They will sometimes come and chirp at us when they feel that their babies are threatened by other animals, and watch as we chase the predators away.  They will also quickly grow accustomed to your presence.  Years ago, we had a vegetable garden in our backyard, and one particular male cardinal would find each tomato just as it became ripe and take a peck out of it.  Even though my boyfriend would always shout at him in mock anger, calling him "Red Bird," he never seemed fazed in the least, and continued this game even when we were in extremely close proximity to him.

Do you have a tip for attracting cardinals? If so, please leave a comment!

The Brown Creeper

One of the more unusual birds that visits our yard on a yearly basis is the Brown Creeper.  Brown Creepers migrate to the Omaha area during the winter months.  The ones in our yard usually appear on either our ash tree or on the wood of our overhang in the back of the house.  The first time I saw one, I almost mistook it for a mouse, because of the rapid way in which it moved up and down on the tree so rapidly.

Years ago, I had hung a suet feeder on our ash tree, but I never saw the Brown Creepers go anywhere near it.  Their primary interest has always been the insects.  During the winter months, they burrow beneath the bark to extract the bugs they want to eat.

Brown Creepr Burrowing for Insects (photo by SCB)

I think the primary reason we see Brown Creepers here during the winters is because we live in a heavily wooded area.  Some of the other birds that visit our yard only in winter include the red-breasted nuthatch and even redpolls.

If you would like to attract Brown Creepers to your backyard, the primary way in which to do so is to have mature trees.  Sometimes this is more easily said than done...for years, the ash tree in our backyard was a favored spot for many birds, some of which ate the bugs living in it and some of which nested in it. Unfortunately, as the tree aged, it sustained a great deal of damage, to the point that eventually we had to have it cut down to a stump.

After the tree was cut so low, I was under the impression that it was dead, and was planning to have it taken out completely in the spring.  To my amazement, when spring finally came, the tree began to sprout again, and is now a small, bushy tree that actually provides quite a bit of shade.  It also has again become a favorite spot for many birds, which like to perch in its branches and explore it for food.  When the Brown Creepers came back last winter, they were still as interested in it as they had been when it was a bigger tree, and seemed to find just as many insects in it.

Brown Creeper Hunting for Insects (photo by SCB)

All of this led me to the conclusion that as troublesome as trees may be, they serve an extremely important purpose, especially for the birds who live in our area.  Unattractive as my ash tree may be in comparison to how it looked before, it continues to be attractive to many birds, and obviously still serves an important purpose as they continue to return to it, year after year.